Lack of customer demand biggest cloud blocker for partners - analyst

Analyst claims European partners are falling behind US and Japanese counterparts when it comes to selling cloud

A lack of customer demand is the biggest barrier for partners when considering whether to offer cloud services, according to market watcher Context.

Context's ChannelWatch Survey of 8,500 resellers claims that n early half of resellers globally have been preparing to sell cloud services this year, but others are put off by the amount of investment required to get started - with 35 per cent of respondants branding this the biggest barrier.

Security fears was rated the next biggest blocker - selected by 19 per cent of respondents.

Context claimed that European partners are lagging behind their Japanese and American counterparts when it comes to offering cloud services.

The report found vendor-branded services to be the preferred entry choice to cloud for partners, thereby mitigating any concerns over security by relying on the vendor's own solutions.

Adam Simon, global managing director at Context, said: "As demand increases, so will the need for distributors and vendors to train their reseller partners."

Some 53 per cent of respondants consider back-up to be the biggest cloud opportunity, followed by storage and business applications.